As far as sealing methods go, linking Illya’s pain to Kuro was a smart bet, especially in light of Kuro repeated jailbreaks later in the episode. It was another reminder of how comparatively evil Rin & Luvia are for protagonists. Throwing out curses is usually the purview of bad guys, but they don’t even bat an eyelash. Part of that is the Fate universe leaking in, but the rest is all them being just the worst, in all the ways.

Bonus points: A little slapstick works well in this series, and I was laughing my tail off when Rin was showing how the curse worked in the most direct way possible. Point made!

As for Kuro’s real reasons for trying to kill Illya, I wouldn’t believe that she was really trying to replace Illya. I didn’t read far enough in the manga to know her real reason, but I know that when someone points out the cliché (like Rin did here), it’s probably something else. There’s more to Kuro than just a clone run amok.

Everyone Loves Shirou (Again)

Moving Kuro from violent antagonist (“Wai, violence.” Hah!) to romantic rival and flirty nuisance was a stroke of genius, for Illya’s reactions if nothing else. It was hilarious to watch her fawn all over Shirou, but even more to have Ruby point out that Kuro is just doing what Illya wants to do. It’s nice to have the main character be the imouto after her onii-chan for once, instead of the other way around. The unfortunate implications are less severe, especially considering their different last names.

But how often is the male harem lead not the main character? Here we have Illya, Kuro, Rin, Luvia, and maybe Miyu all after Shirou. (Though Kuro and Miyu are debatable…the former because she may have only been looking for mana, and the latter because I have no idea what’s going on there yet.) You could argue that this time, it’s the main character (Illya) who is in another character’s harem! Though that doesn’t seem quite right. Probably because the whole point of the other girls is just to tweak Illya by making moves on her onii-chan. It’s an unusual setup to be sure.

Miyu…?

I don’t know what’s up with Miyu glomming onto Shirou. I have my guesses, but once again I haven’t read far enough into the manga to know. What I would say is that we’ve gotten this far without learning anything about Miyu’s past – something Illya herself realizes this episode – and that she’s probably not a normal girl. Illya herself has been shown to have deeper powers than just those given to her by Ruby, so it’s reasonable to assume that both sticks sought out special holders. I just don’t know what that means for Miyu. (No spoilers everyone, put them in spoiler tags and label them. Thanks.)

By the way, I loved how they showed Miyu’s realization. That really shocked me back to seriousness and prepared me for what was about to come.

Kissing Demon Kuro

First of all, a disclaimer: Non-consensual kissing is not cool. It’s sexual assault. Everyone happy? Trying to kill people isn’t cool either. I thought these things were understood, but some people were concerned about it last episode, so I thought I’d address it. A lot of the things that happen in fiction – especially comedy…listen to a good standup comedian sometime and you’ll quickly learn what I mean – would not at all be okay if they happened in real life. Fortunately, it’s fiction, which means it’s made up and we can enjoy it even if it would be horrible in real life. All good? Moving on.

Kiss demon Kuro was hilarious! I could list out all the great moments, but the answer is “All of them”, so I won’t bother. Like during the second episode of Tokyo ESP, this belongs to the realm of justifiable fanservice, so it’s easy to enjoy without reservations. Given that this is still the Fate universe, Kuro kissing to drain mana is well within the established order of things. Plus, I reiterate, it was hilarious! Poor Taiga. And with Mimi, you may have a kindred spirit, Miyu. If things don’t work out with Illya, you know who to call. Or Kuro. She seems totally down for an occasional make out session if nothing else.

Miyu’s Secrets, Kuro’s Secrets

On the roof, Kuro made a comment about how nice it was that Illya could blame all of her problems on Kuro. I thought about it, and it’s true that while Illya has the freedom to have a regular life, Kuro does not. They keep trying to restrain her, and even kill her!

But that argument doesn’t fly far. Contrast Kuro’s secrets with Miyu’s secrets. Not what they are – I don’t know that – but who they are and the fact that they have secrets. Miyu has been nothing but a loyal and reliable friend, so if she doesn’t want to talk about something, I agree with Luvia – there’s not something I get to say often – when she told Illya to leave it alone. But Kuro was trying to kill Illya until they put a magical leash on her. Both Miyu and Kuro’s secrets could be dangerous, but Kuro has proven herself untrustworthy. It’s entirely reasonable that they wouldn’t trust Illya’s new “cousin”.

Looking Ahead – Kuroe von Einzbern

More Kuro is always a good thing, and it looks like next week will be an extension of Illya’s troubles against her. So more of the same – but knowing this series, the Fate universe will leak back in sooner or later.

tl;dr:@StiltsOutLoud – Kuro is leashed, but it only leads to her making out with all of Illya’s friends. Also, everyone loves Shirou again. Damn! #prismaillya s2e3

Random thoughts:

A meat slave Luvia? Really? I wonder if she learned Japanese from doujinshi.

“Wai, violence.” Still my favorite line of the whole episode, mostly for the delivery. Kadowaki Mai is the only true Illya!

Illya broke! I don’t blame her for that, or for running away. A tactical retreat is often the wisest move. In fact, it’s a critical part of Stilts’ Patented Rules for Magical Combat™! Plan A: Blow everything up. Plan B: Run away. I think that covers pretty much everything. Now you know why I like this series so much!

@Stilts: I was attempting to get you to think by pointing that out, Stilts. The lines that followed the one I quoted indicate a certain failure to see. Kuro didn’t get angry when Rin had her bound up in the basement and threatened to torture her, she didn’t get angry when they used a seal to bind her to Illya so Kuro couldn’t kill her, she wasn’t angry when Miyu tried to stab her in the back with Rule Breaker last episode. It wasn’t until now, in this conversation, that Kuro got angry.

Why? Think about that. Understanding what causes a character’s emotional reactions is vital to understanding that character’s motivations.

Ah, got to love the mischievously naughty Kuro. It is indeed strange that we’re a season and a quarter into the story and we still no next to nothing about our co-heroine Miyu. Interesting yes? Kuro seems to have a deeper character as well so it should be fun to learn more about her.

I love it, much of my own coverage agrees with you. Well, except for the Show Spoiler ▼

Kuro being straightforward…she really does want to kill and replace…I’ve read up to like chapter four of 3rei…and that feeling never quite goes away with Kuro…

…and thanks for pointing it out. “Oh, this child has come to kill this other child, well that’s OK for the plot. But kissing! OH NOES! Call the Tokyo Governor!”

And one of the things I’ve come to like about how they block the action is that when Kuro “get’s down to business” they always pull the camera away, with the lip smacking sound effect. It is like Kuro doesn’t forget to punctuate that very complex sentence…

It’s a lot more complicated than just the standard “if I kill her I get to be the real Illya” concept you see with the average evil twin type story, though. Kuro could be argued to have a legitimate claim to Illya’s name.

Well I’d say we’ve gone from yuri undertones to full on yuri. Not even the teacher is immune from the passions of lesbian lick locking mana replenishment. Kind of funny that Fate kaleid is now fast approaching Sakura Trick level kissing in both quanity and quality. Although the best part had to be the self punishment Illya was giving herself, so many hilarious reaction faces. Like this one, all my giggles:

Miyu’s scene was foreshadowing for Drei , 2Wei’s sequel – if you are not sure what’s going on, this means the foreshadowing has not given away the plot. I am very glad they didn’t cut it out, unlike how the first season botched Illya’s conversation with Irisviel.

Bleh i guess I’ll have to get used to Kuro the rapist. Not really fond of her character yet. I think she’s being used to play up on several fetishes like incest, forced yuri and dare I say “selfcest”? ( I can see things going that way at this point). Basically feel the same way Illya does about her. Get her outta here so we can get more Illya x Miyu! :P

It seems like there always has to be an aggressor in yuri based shows. Heck even while Sakura Trick was mutual a good portion of the time I’d argue that Haruka was very aggressive. And much like Sakura Trick if we just have Kuro sucking face with someone every episode that really cheapens any effect the “kiss” it’s supposed to have later. These kisses are a key element to the story but if all I’m thinking is “That’s hot!” I can’t say I’ll care when it’s hopefully used properly later. Especially since they are showing more favor to the erotic nature of these scenes while making the comedic aspect less prominent (I referenced the manga for last episode’s kiss scene, wasn’t funny at all in the anime). They can try to justify her using the mana excuse but when it comes to anime you can justify just about EVERYTHING if you wanted. Daimidaler justifies it’s fanservice by making it so the pilot has to grope his co pilot in order for the machine to work………..yeah.

Please note that I don’t have anything against anyone who likes this sense of humor. It’s simply not my cup of tea. Fiction or not, doesn’t mean i have to like it!

(tsundere head turn!) :P

Funny episode though. I knew the pain tradeoff was going to be used comedically and boy did it deliver ^_^.

Loved the episode seeing the reactions of every girls violated by Kuro especially Taiga’s face. Another reason I like this anime is they hired the original seiyuu that don’t get spotlight these days any more. I hope it adapts the entire manga slowly.

its stuff like this that makes me dislike yuri now. Yuri nowadays isn’t even about love anymore, its all about lust now. that’s why I praise haruka and michiru’s relationship they may be two girls but their relationship is based on their feelings not how many times they can make out in a day.

Agreed. I feel like yuri has really fallen in terms of quality lately because companies seem to choose shows that give people what they want without having to work for it. The lead up to that moment when both partners are on a mutual level of love and understanding for each other is what makes yuri worth it for me. Sure……kissing is nice but the more it happens the more I feel like it’s just lust talking…….not love (what I dislike about Sakura Trick though it handled the issue decently).
Akuma no Riddle had potential but ends up taking to much time focusing on the side characters while largely ignoring the relationship of the main pair. Yuri in general is pretty rare since it has a rather “niche” following (the only yuri show that sold decently was Yuru Yuri I think). I’m still waiting for a fantasy themed yuri series that can satisfy me =/.

It’s part in parcel of a hyper competitive industry where attention is everything; the faster you can acquire attention often the better the profit margin will be as guaranteed if you refuse to give the audience what they want three other shows will. True romantic yuri centered around the relationship rather than the bedroom antics is just another victim of this anime/manga “arms race” (if you will).

@leatherhead

I’d hesitate to call Yuru Yuri actual yuri as it was more of a SoL show with cute girls doing cute things which is where its success came from. The yuri in the show was much like Fate kaleid’s first season, hinted at and teased throughout, but never given the sexual treatment except for a couple of scenes. Heck Fate kaleid in these past two episodes already has more public kissing than both seasons of Yuru Yuri combined.

Yuru Yuri is the exception that proves the rule IMO, without its yuri allure to attract attention it would have just been another SoL show.

I’d just like to point out that something being “Yuri” doesn’t mean there has to be any sexual shenanigans going on between the pair for it to still be considered yuri. In it’s simplest definition it means to show the attraction of female partners. That technically means there doesn’t even have to be any kissing for it to be yuri. Even if it’s mostly teased Yuru Yuri still fits within that definition.

Also I’d like to point out that a lot of “cute girls doing cute things” shows have yuri undertones that are never committed too. Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka?, Kiniro Mosaic and Non Non Biyori are recent examples of this that I’ve watched. Yuri Yuru was just much more blatant about the undertones which is why it’s holds the Yuri tag. Which is why I think it managed to do well. People like being teased but never committed to the idea of lesbianism or homosexuality in general. If you tease yuri but don’t make it the MAIN focus most of the time you get more people interested in your product. Because the commitment to yuri or yaoi turns A LOT of people off immediately.

Beware of drawing conclusions on uncertain data. It’s likely that what you want the answer to be is influencing it more than any real truth of the matter.

For instance, I think YuruYuri did well because it was funny, pretty well written, and it got lucky. Other slice-of-life shows of comparable quality and story just didn’t get lucky, though I would personally say that the seeming influx of YuruYuri-esque shows since its first season may be damaging them.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true, though. I may just want that to be true.

animation studios with scenes like this seem to be saying all men are stupid and only think with their little buddy. Not to mention that these are TEN YEAR OLD girls and no kid no matter what gender knows their sexual orientation at that age. This why sailor moon crystal has a better story; Takeuchi-sensei while brainstorming for sailor moon wasn’t like” hmm? I can I get men to like me story. I know I’ll have all my female characters kiss and violate each other. yeah that’ll defiantly bring in the male crowd” no she didn’t why because she was smart enough to make a story both boys and girls could enjoy without being gratuitous about it.